The district administration found a unique opportunity to generate voter awareness during the recently concluded Dussehra festival here.
Hundreds of devotees who thronged the famous Maa Danteshwari temple were told about the importance of voting through a cultural platform, informed District Collector K C Devsenapati in a meeting chaired by Central Awareness Observer P V K Reddy deputed by the Election Commission in the district.
The Collector informed that the message on significance of voting was conveyed through plays in local dialects such as ‘Halbi’ and ‘Gondi’. Addressing the meeting, Reddy stated that efforts must be made so that the maximum number of eligible citizens have their names in the voter list by October 25 this year.
‘For this, it is necessary that the voter awareness programme runs at all levels’, he said. The Collector informed in the meeting that the voter awareness programmes were also being carried out at Public Grievance Redressal camps, weekly Haat and other forums in the district. He said that voter awareness is also being generated through art troupes in an entertaining manner. This apart, awarnbess programme had also been underway in the schools and colleges.
Devsenapati also stated that voter awareness is also be spread through holding of rallies by school children. This apart, the voters are being informed about the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). The Central Awareness Observer stated in the meeting that the youth in the age group of 18 to 19 years are highly energetic and have lots of enthusiasm but they participate in the voting process in small numbers.
The management of various colleges can play a significant role in motivating the youth to vote. Sometimes, citizens do not find their names in the voter list which is a very unpleasant situation. To prevent this, the administration must make citizens move in a direction in which they themselves take interest to get their names registered in the voter list, Reddy said.
He said that the citizens must be especially told about the benefits of choosing the right candidate during the voter awareness programme and the perils of choosing the wrong candidate. The administration must also generate awareness about ‘Ethical Voting’, he said. Reddy also asked the officials to generate more awareness about ‘None of the Above’ (NOTA) option in EVMs. ‘Even before, the NOTA option was available but its use was cumbersome but now it has been simplified.’